Disaster Relief & Community Projects

B’nai B’rith International continues with our global disaster relief, a tradition we began in 1865.

This year, the B’nai B’rith Disaster Relief Fund provided $12,000 to support the needs of Syrian refugees seeking medical attention in Israel. The ZIV Medical Center in Zefat, Israel, received funds to purchase medical equipment that is not already paid for by the Israeli government. The B’nai B’rith Disaster Relief Fund also supplied money to the B’nai B’rith World Center-Jerusalem to purchase and deliver infant formula to vulnerable Syrian children as part of the Israeli military’s humanitarian aid project called Operation Good Neighbor. This purchase provided 9,000 feedings.

In the United States, the Disaster Relief Fund responded to the devastating floods in Missouri, using a social media campaign, we raised $5,000 to distribute. The campaign provided an opportunity to have every dollar matched from the B’nai B’rith Disaster Fund. One of the organizations that received these funds was the Food Bank of Northeast Arkansas.

The B’nai B’rith Disaster Relief Fund has also provided a grant to NECHAMA that will match funds for NECHAMA’s fundraising campaign. NECHAMA has been a longtime recipient of our support providing assistance for victims of domestic disasters and volunteer opportunities.

B’nai B’rith is proud to support NECHAMA’s work that brought volunteers together from across the country to muck out and gut homes. Volunteers assisted in cleaning up 33 homes in two counties impacted by floods. NECHAMA posted a large banner headline on its website thanking B’nai B’rith for helping it hit a June fundraising goal.

The fall of 2017 saw three major hurricanes — Harvey, Irma and Maria — which prompted us to open disaster relief campaigns. We also sponsored a clean-up project in Houston that brought two Texas Alpha Epsilon Pi (AEPi) fraternity chapters (we have a partnership with AEPi) to clean-up efforts in October in cooperation with NECHAMA.

A utility truck paid for by B’nai B’rith, in cooperation with NECHAMA, had its first deployment to Florida to assist with clean-up after Hurricane Irma.

B’nai B’rith also provided water purification tablets for the Jewish community in Havana, Cuba, and surrounding provinces.

Our dedicated volunteers and staff get deeply involved in their communities, helping out and pitching in. Here are a few examples:

B’nai B’rith Australia/New Zealand chartered a new unit in Sydney, Womanpower Unit No. 3519, which grew out of a group of highly motivated Jewish women who aspired to serve the community with their community and management skills. They felt that their group could achieve far more within the Jewish community if they were affiliated and engaged with a world-recognized organization, and B'nai B'rith was their obvious choice. They are already organizing great fundraising and support activities.

Great Lakes Bowling

In March, 41 teams from the United States and Canada traveled to a bowling alley in suburban Detroit for the 76th annual B’nai B’rith Bowling Association Sectional Tournament. For three days, 164 B’nai B’rith bowlers competed for high honors. The B’nai B’rith Bowling Association, which formed in 1939, hosted the tournament, becoming an umbrella organization for leagues across the country.

Golf

During the spring and summer of 2017, golfers around North America enjoyed events that benefit both B’nai B’rith and their communities. Some have been not-to-miss annual events for decades; others are relatively new. But all are success stories with great, innovative elements and beneficial partnerships in these five communities: Washington, D.C, Detroit, Toronto, Chicago and Denver.

For several years, B’nai B’rith has been proud to be one of the sponsors of “Shot in the Dark,” hosted by the Columbia Lighthouse for the Blind (CLB). The fifth annual Shot in the Dark Golf and Dinner Classic was held at Woodmont Country Club in Rockville, Md. on May 9, with financial support from corporations and organizations, and enthusiastic involvement by local government leaders and media personalities. In addition to the tournament, the event includes an auction, award presentations and a longest-drive contest. But what sets this event apart is the opportunity for golfers who are blind or visually impaired to participate in a golf clinic hosted by nationally renowned blind golfing champions Phil Blackwell, Mark Arnold and Bruce Hooper.

June saw the Great Lakes Region B’nai B’rith Annual Golf Classic, which the B’nai B’rith community in suburban Detroit has sponsored for 35 years. Proceeds from the tournament fees, silent auction, raffles for a cruise and other prizes, and a dinner, which attracts still more participants, are used to support B’nai B’rith International, local BBYO and Hillel, and scholarships.

In just its second year, the B’nai B’rith Canada annual Charity Golf Classic was held on June 13 at the Lebovic Golf Club in Aurora, Ontario. The event attracted more than 100 golfers and included an 18-hole tournament and tests of skill, a luncheon buffet, Scotch and beer tastings, and the chance to meet celebrity guests Toronto Maple Leafs star Zach Hyman and NHL greats Rick Vaive, Gary Leeman and Marcel Dionne. Proceeds from the Golf Classic support B’nai B’rith Canada’s affordable housing and seniors programs, as well as its advocacy efforts fighting racism, anti-Semitism and discrimination in Canada.

The annual B’nai B’rith Sports Lodge Bill Stein Memorial golf outing was held in August at Hawthorn Woods Country Club, in suburban Chicago. All proceeds go to college scholarships for Chicago-area students — well over $2 million since1964. B’nai B’rith Denver also planned once again to co-sponsor an annual golf charity tournament with JCC Denver and the Denver Jewish Chamber of Commerce.

From B’nai B’rith Australia/New Zealand, B'nai B'rith Courage to Care in Victoria and New South Wales conducted exhibitions in many schools this year, taking an anti-bullying message to thousands of children. A highlight for the Melbourne team was hosting the exhibition at the Victorian Parliament House, a truly prestigious location which is reserved only for the most valuable contributions to the community.

B’nai B’rith International has advocated for global Jewry and championed the cause of human rights since 1843. B’nai B’rith is recognized as a vital voice in promoting Jewish unity and continuity, a staunch defender of the State of Israel, a tireless advocate on behalf of senior citizens and a leader in disaster relief. With a presence around the world, we are the Global Voice of the Jewish Community.